The present invention relates to an architecture model of a human interface to attain the purpose of the user through dispersion and coordination of functions by the user and the group of agents.
In the past, the principal purpose of a computer was to process a large quantity of data at high speed. Thus, in the development of a computer, importance has been placed on the processing efficiency and the throughput of the computer. Also, the application programs have been developed independently. Therefore, features for the human interface are also incorporated in such programs. Under such circumstances, the importance is necessarily put on the fulfillment of the functions requested by the application, and the human interface has often been treated as supplementary.
For example, the application is in full recognizance of all functional modules under its control and it operates by directly specifying these functional modules. In case a certain application is to be operated, it is necessary for the user to memorize the interface specific to the application. In other words, the conventional type computer has a machine-oriented architecture centered on a machine, and the common portion is cut off and brought out for the convenience of the machine.
In recent years, attention has been increasingly focused on UIMS (user interface management system). This has been conceived to offer the better environment for the users and to improve the quality because little time has been allocated for the manufacture of the user interface of the application programmer. The conventional multi-window or UIMS are based on the viewpoints that the user interface of the minimum quality can be prepared without spending much time by taking out the common portions from the existing application programs and making them as standard parts. The origin of this idea is not from the standpoint of the users but of the developer.
For example, when a certain application is to be operated as described above, the application has an interface of its own. For this reason, if the application is changed, the users must learn and undergo training. Not only in the case where the beginners buy a new computer, but also in the case where computer or software is changed to different ones, the user can rarely use it at first. When a new type of computer or new application software is announced, bulky manuals are offered, and the users cannot use the computer or software unless they learn and understand fully the description in such bulky manuals. Further, in almost all cases, the concept, functions and operating procedure of the application software are independent and different from each other, and it is exclusive and inconsistent. Therefore, the users must learn each different type of application software, and the learning efficiency is not very high. Moreover, for efficient utilization of a computer, it is necessary to learn functions and operating procedures and also to undergo physical training in key operation.
The interface of a computer is usually via a keyboard, mouse and CRT, and the direct manipulation using a mouse offers a considerably effective environment. However, there are some problems such as the inconveniences to input drawings, illustrations, etc.